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One sunny day last winter, Diana
Frost led me along the rocky wooded
ridge, down into the valley, across
the pond dam, and up the hill on the other
side. We walked for a few hours, enjoying
the relatively warm January day. On the way
back to the truck, instead of returning on the
trail, we scrambled up a dry drainage.
And that’s when I spotted it, or actually
them. Diana described my reaction later:
“I wasn’t sure what she was looking at, but
I could tell she was excited. So, I knew it
must be something interesting.” What I
was looking at was the bark of the post oaks
growing up through the stony soil. What
made it exciting was the spiral pattern of the
bark, twisting up the trunk — like a candy
cane. This twisting oak bark often is a sign of
slow growth, indicting that the tree may be
old, really old — such as 200 years old — or
to be dramatic, ancient.
Not many ancient trees are left in Oklahoma.
In the 1880s, sawmills were established in
the forests of the eastern mountains. The sturdy and gnarly trees of the cross timbers were
not considered commercially viable, but were used locally by settlers for fuel and building
materials. The cross timbers is a transitional woodland, between the grasslands and the
eastern deciduous forest. [See Forests of Cast Iron on page 4 more information about the
cross timbers ecoregion.] Trees on the open flats were first to fall to the ax and saw. As
the cutting of trees in the cross timbers pushed back to steeper ridges and rockier hillsides,
more trees were left uncut. On these less accessible locations we now find the remnants of
the ancient cross timbers forest.
Diana, who now lives in Norman, contacted the Registry Program a little while after she
and her siblings and cousin inherited from their parents 120 acres of woodland near
Sand Springs in western Tulsa County. She was concerned about potential drilling on the
property and wanted to learn more about protecting the land. She hadn’t been there in
years, but remembered it as a special place – a natural childhood playground – where she
and her family spent weekends picnicking, fishing, and exploring. Diana grew up in Tulsa
and her parents bought the property in the 1950s to “have a bit of land.”
Newly Registered Sites
Ancient Cross Timbers Found on
Two New Natural Areas
Winter
2011-2012
Taking Action:
Oklahoma Prescribed
Fire Council............... 3
Organization formed to
facilitate controlled burn use.
Focus on Oklahoma’s
Natural Diversity:
Cast Iron Forests..... 4
Explore the cross timbers
forests of central Oklahoma.
A Note From
Registry Assistant... 5
Environmental Studies
graduate student spends her
summer with the Registry.
The Illinois River..... 6
A new conservation book is
full of inspiring photography
of this scenic river.
About Us: The Natural
Areas Registry was formed by the
Oklahoma Legislature in 1984
to identify areas with unique
natural features and to encourage
their voluntary protection by
Oklahoma’s citizens.
Oklahoma Biological Survey
111 East Chesapeake St.
Norman, OK 73019-5112
Phone: (405) 325-7658
okregistry@ou.edu
The spiral pattern in the bark indicates slow
growth and possibly a long life.
gcontinued on page 2

One sunny day last winter, Diana
Frost led me along the rocky wooded
ridge, down into the valley, across
the pond dam, and up the hill on the other
side. We walked for a few hours, enjoying
the relatively warm January day. On the way
back to the truck, instead of returning on the
trail, we scrambled up a dry drainage.
And that’s when I spotted it, or actually
them. Diana described my reaction later:
“I wasn’t sure what she was looking at, but
I could tell she was excited. So, I knew it
must be something interesting.” What I
was looking at was the bark of the post oaks
growing up through the stony soil. What
made it exciting was the spiral pattern of the
bark, twisting up the trunk — like a candy
cane. This twisting oak bark often is a sign of
slow growth, indicting that the tree may be
old, really old — such as 200 years old — or
to be dramatic, ancient.
Not many ancient trees are left in Oklahoma.
In the 1880s, sawmills were established in
the forests of the eastern mountains. The sturdy and gnarly trees of the cross timbers were
not considered commercially viable, but were used locally by settlers for fuel and building
materials. The cross timbers is a transitional woodland, between the grasslands and the
eastern deciduous forest. [See Forests of Cast Iron on page 4 more information about the
cross timbers ecoregion.] Trees on the open flats were first to fall to the ax and saw. As
the cutting of trees in the cross timbers pushed back to steeper ridges and rockier hillsides,
more trees were left uncut. On these less accessible locations we now find the remnants of
the ancient cross timbers forest.
Diana, who now lives in Norman, contacted the Registry Program a little while after she
and her siblings and cousin inherited from their parents 120 acres of woodland near
Sand Springs in western Tulsa County. She was concerned about potential drilling on the
property and wanted to learn more about protecting the land. She hadn’t been there in
years, but remembered it as a special place – a natural childhood playground – where she
and her family spent weekends picnicking, fishing, and exploring. Diana grew up in Tulsa
and her parents bought the property in the 1950s to “have a bit of land.”
Newly Registered Sites
Ancient Cross Timbers Found on
Two New Natural Areas
Winter
2011-2012
Taking Action:
Oklahoma Prescribed
Fire Council............... 3
Organization formed to
facilitate controlled burn use.
Focus on Oklahoma’s
Natural Diversity:
Cast Iron Forests..... 4
Explore the cross timbers
forests of central Oklahoma.
A Note From
Registry Assistant... 5
Environmental Studies
graduate student spends her
summer with the Registry.
The Illinois River..... 6
A new conservation book is
full of inspiring photography
of this scenic river.
About Us: The Natural
Areas Registry was formed by the
Oklahoma Legislature in 1984
to identify areas with unique
natural features and to encourage
their voluntary protection by
Oklahoma’s citizens.
Oklahoma Biological Survey
111 East Chesapeake St.
Norman, OK 73019-5112
Phone: (405) 325-7658
okregistry@ou.edu
The spiral pattern in the bark indicates slow
growth and possibly a long life.
gcontinued on page 2